By Teresa Carr

Administrative Assistant

Understanding Lung Disease – Caring for someone with a chronic illness such as lung disease requires an understanding of how different chronic lung diseases affect different people. Chronic lung disease is not always noticeable to others unless the person is on oxygen therapy or uses a scooter or wheelchair.

People with lung disease may try to hide their symptoms or shrug them off by saying they’re just tired or had a busy day. Many times, it’s hard for them to ask for help, and they may get angry at their caregiver or family members for even offering to help. When a person with lung disease has difficulty breathing or is extremely fatigued, he or she feels a loss of control and may try to control other things around them (like a caregiver or family). He or she may also feel guilty if they smoked in the past, and you, the caregiver, may feel some resentment toward them if they did smoke.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is long-term blockage of air movement in the lungs. It includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Think of the lungs like an upside-down tree, with the windpipe (trachea) being the trunk, the bronchial tubes as the branches, and the air sacs as the leaves. Because there are millions of these tiny air sacs, a lot of damage can be done before a person will notice breathing problems. Because oxygen moves into the bloodstream through these tiny air sacs, when they are damaged, we cannot get enough oxygen into our body.

A person with COPD may have either emphysema or bronchitis, but most people with COPD have both. Some may also have symptoms similar to asthma. In emphysema, there is damage to the walls of the air sacs in the lungs that prevents transfer of oxygen into the bloodstream. The lungs lose their ability to stretch, producing shortness of breath during activity. In chronic bronchitis, the damage is in the breathing tubes (bronchial tubes), which become inflamed and swollen and produce large amounts of mucus, making it difficult to get air in and out of the lungs.

Source: The Comfort of Home for Chronic Lung Disease

Causes of COPD – The most common cause of COPD is cigarette smoking. Other causes are:

• Breathing in dust, chemicals and coal dust or silica at work

• Indoor air pollution from cooking fuels and heating in poorly ventilated homes

• Secondhand smoke

• Childhood lung infections

• Only about 2% of cases are inherited

Symptoms of COPD – The first symptom of COPD is usually coughing that produces mucus, followed by shortness of breath after activities such as climbing the stairs. As breathing difficulties worsen, people with COPD may eventually get tired dressing and bathing, lose the ability to concentrate, and put strain on their heart because their lungs are not processing enough oxygen, causing swollen feet, ankles and legs.

The Ohio Department of Development and ABCAP want to remind Ohioans that assistance is available to help with their home energy bills. The Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) helps Ohioans at or below 175 percent of the federal poverty guidelines pay their heating bills. Applications for the HEAP program must be received by May 31, 2022.

Just A Thought: “The year is divided into four seasons: Shoveling, seeding, mowing and raking.” ~William D. Tammeus, in Kansas City Star, as quoted by The Reader’s Digest, 1980

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Originally Appeared Here